Contact lens warning

People who wear contact lenses are at risk of serious eye
infection and blindness if they do not follow hygienic practices,
optometrists have warned.

The warning comes as title-winning boxer, Anthony Mundine, is in
hospital with a career-threatening eye infection and no sight in
his left eye.

It is believed Mundine contracted the infection after putting a
contact lens in his mouth prior to placing it on his eye.

People were regularly admitted to hospital with serious eye
infections caused by unhygienic practices, said the NSW Division of
the Optometrists Association of Australia.

"People just don't realise that contact lenses or novelty lenses
are actually therapeutic devices and they are introducing a foreign
object to the eye which is highly susceptible to harmful bacteria,"
said executive director Andrew McKinnon.

"Optometrists will always warn users of the dangers of lenses
which are not properly prepared first and the procedures required
to safely use these devices."

However popular novelty lenses, which were not prescribed by eye
specialists, could still be obtained over the internet or at the
markets, Mr McKinnon said.

The quality and condition of these lenses were sometimes
questionable and users rarely received advice on proper hygiene
practices in these settings, he said.

The consequences of using unclean lenses can be severe.

Earlier this year a 15-year-old girl required a corneal graft
for one of her eyes after being blinded following an infection from
a novelty lens. She has since regained her sight from an operation
using a donor cornea.

Mr McKinnon advised people who wear contact lenses to always
wash their hands before putting them on, and to never use water or
saliva to clean them.

Mundine is expected to spend at least a week in hospital while
doctors determine the extent of the eye infection, before any
decisions are made about his boxing career.